Me and You
by fluorescent-adolescent13
Summary: A collection of Linstead one-shots. The missing moments of Erin or Jay getting hurt, emotionally and physically, and the other comforting and being there for them. The moments that we don't see on the screen.
1. Nosebleed

It had been a long day. A long day that was turning into an even longer night. Jay had always hated working late nights at the district. They had never been his favourite. Sure, there were only a few aspects of his job that he disliked but those seemed to rank highly on the short list. The only thing that could ever make it bearable for him was the fact that Erin sat directly across from him at her own desk. If luck was on his side then he would be suffering with her.

The mountain of paperwork that was sitting in front of him, waiting to be filled in and filed away by him, was the main culprit. It held his freedom hostage. He could think of a million other things that he would rather be doing on a Friday night and none of them involved paperwork taking up his precious time. It was barely past nine o'clock and Jay already could feel himself losing the will to live.

He wasn't making it any easier for himself. He had near enough exhausted all of his means of procrastination. There was only so much staring at walls and playing with the apps on his phone that he could do. He had rearranged the contents of his desk drawers twice and stole many, many glances at the woman that was a few feet away from him. If Erin had anything to do with matters then it was far easier to avoid doing work, though tonight she wasn't giving him any attention. Instead her head was buried deep in her own stack of folders.

She looked as though she could have slept for days. Fun and games aside, it was clear that they didn't share the same work ethic. Jay had discovered that quickly while they were both cooped up at the district. He chose not to mention that dark circles that were looming underneath her eyes. It wasn't as though they made much difference to him - with or without them his eyes tended to stay glued to her.

They hadn't spoken in almost twenty minutes. Even at that it was only the exchange of a few words. Usually they could sit in each others company for hours in silence, comfortable just being together, but Jay was like an impatient child craving attention.

"Why don't we pack some of this stuff up and take it home with us? We could always grab something to eat on the way back?" Jay said suddenly, deciding finally that he was fed up with the lack of noise. For a second he thought that she was ignoring him completely, watching as her eyes moved slightly from side to side as she read the words in front of her. She shook her head slightly in response, barely glancing at him from the computer screen. Jay sighed. He couldn't decide whether or not it was a good idea to push the matter any further. If past experience was anything to go by then he was fighting a losing battle. Admitting defeat had never been one of her strong suits. "You look just about as bad as I feel, Lindsay."

Erin looked up from her desk at the mention of her surname. She raised an eyebrow before replying to him sarcastically. "Wow, you sure do know how to make a girl feel special _Halstead_." They usually reserved calling each other their last names for out in the field. She couldn't help but smirk slightly.

"You know what I mean, Er." He shook his head slightly as he spoke and Erin let out a long breath. She attempted to reassure him with a softer smile but it was a feeble attempt that only made her look all the more tired and made Jay all the more frustrated with her.

"I'm fine. Honestly," she said. "Besides, someone has to get all of this done and I don't want the earache from Voight if it's still here tomorrow. Not everyone feels inclined to slack off when the first bit of boring work is thrown their way."

Jay feigned offence. "Me? Slacking off?" She chuckled a little before he opened his mouth to speak again. "Me and you both know that this can be done after a solid 8 hours of sleep. It's stressing you out."

"If you need a nap I won't judge."

He ignored her words. "You're stressing me out," he muttered, slouching forward and placing his cell phone onto his desk. He lazily reached over for a file and opened it, grimacing slightly at the sheer volume of text that was on the page.

Jay didn't realise that he had heard him speak. "When does this job not stress us out?" Erin scoffed. The brunette brought a hand up towards her face, rubbing her eyes and brushing a loose strand away from them and back behind her ear. She tried to concentrate again but she could feel Jay's eyes burning a hole into the crown of her head. Erin looked up again, realising that his eyes were in fact still firmly fixed on her. She smirked again as their eyes met. He was definitely stubborn. Not quite as stubborn as she could be though. They both knew that much. "Keep your eyes on your own paper, Detective."

Jay raised both hands in surrender. He couldn't help but be worried about her. It didn't matter whether they were in the field, at the district or even just at home. It was like it had been programmed into his brain the moment that they had met. He also couldn't help but think about the possibility of her being wrapped in his arms, in the comfort of their own bed, instead of neck deep in paperwork. It had been too long since he had seen her relax. If she relaxed then he could too. "Okay."

A few moments passed, silence filling the space between them again just as it had before. Jay had finally managed to concentrate on something productive, even writing a few coherent sentences. On the other hand, his interruption had caused Erin to lose her own focus. She pushed her chair back, stretching her legs as she stood up and walked towards Jay's desk. "Refill?"

Jay noticed her outstretched hand before he heard her voice. Dark circles were beginning to form underneath his own eyes. They were the only reply that Erin needed but still she waited for a response from him. "More coffee?" Jay teased. He mimicked her expression from moments before, raising an eyebrow questioningly at her. Almost instantly it relaxed into a lazy grin as she laughed slightly at him, and he passed his empty mug across to her. "Always. This? This is why you are the best partner in the whole world."

"To be fair, I can think of many, many other things that make me the best partner in the whole world Jay, but they aren't exactly appropriate for the workplace," Erin replied, tilting her head slightly and leaning against his desk. Her voice lowered to barely more than a whisper and Jay unconsciously moved closer to her. "I mean, they are pretty exclusive to our apartments but you never know."

"You know you're killing me right?" he replied breathily as he watched the brunette turn on her heels, walking away from him and into the small kitchen. He could have sworn that she was swinging her hips that little bit more because she knew that he was looking - emphasizing the movement because she knew that it would get to him. Jay groaned quietly and leaned back into his chair again. "A slow and very painful death."

"Die quietly," Erin called back from the other room. Jay could practically hear the smile that was on her lips. He could imagine her dimples popping out and a smug look resting on her face. It was better than the zombie like state she had been in before.

"If we're stuck here then I might as well order some food. Do you want something? I'm thinking Thai?" Silence. He tilted his body forwards, attempting to peer into the kitchen to see what she was doing but he couldn't see much other than her back. "Babe?"

When she didn't reply again Jay immediately rose to his feet. Even though he knew nothing could have possibly gone terribly wrong, his mind still jumped to conclusions. She could be wrapped from head to toe in bubblewrap but silence like that would always make his heart drop. He heard a quiet curse from Erin's direction and he began to move, walking the same path as she had only moments previously. His thoughts raced in the few seconds between his desk and the kitchen. It didn't help that the first sight that met his eyes was one of red blood covering her face. It was everywhere. It was on her face. It was on her hands. It was on her shirt. It made him want to be sick.

"Shit Erin," Jay whispered. He could handle blood. In this line of work there was blood around every corner. He had seen more blood than anyone should. He just couldn't handle the sight of his girlfriend's blood. It was unsettling. It made his stomach turn. "I let you out of my sight for a minute."

The brunette was leaning stiffly against the counter. One hand firmly pinched her nose while the other was tugging almost desperately at the box of tissues that lay on the worktop beside her. Jay moved quickly next to her, ready to help in any way that he could. He put his steady hand over her own shaking fingers and gently tipped her head back with his other. Erin frowned slightly as the movement, the sensation of the blood in her throat uncomfortable. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and whispered a muffled thanks. He smiled softly. The technique had stuck with Jay ever since he was a little kid, it was always what he had been taught to do. Besides, it meant that she could look at the ceiling rather than the sight of her own blood that was covering her.

It didn't take long for Erin to try and joke. Her vulnerability only showed in short bursts. "Y'know, I'm not really that hungry all of a sudden. She gulped loudly, wincing at the taste in her mouth. There was a growing clump of red on the counter next to her where she had begun to discard the dark red tissues that she had used. Erin couldn't help but laugh at herself ever so slightly, she wasn't sure what else she was supposed to do at a moment like this.

"Are you okay?" Jay said, ignoring what she had said completely. The look of worry that he had adopted seemed permanently etched into his face, a stern expression replacing his usually more relaxed face. It wasn't often that Erin seen him like this. Sure, she had seen his anxiety whenever the had a close call on a case but this genuine and almost intense concern was rare. His frown faltered for a second, realising what a stupid question he had asked her. "I mean...I know that you're okay even though you're, like, not really okay, but...?"

"It's only a little nosebleed," Erin sighed, attempting to give him another reassuring smile like the one she had offered him earlier but it was equally as useless. She grabbed another tissue before correcting herself. "It's a shitty nosebleed. I'll survive Jay."

Jay started to relax slightly, leaning back against the counter just as she was. He snuck a hand behind her back and started to trace comforting circles on her spine. It distracted her from the discomfort that she was feeling in her head and for that minute or so, Erin had never been more grateful that she had him by her side. She let her body rest lightly against his, hesitating slightly as she realised that she might be getting blood on his clean shirt but he pulled her closer to him without a second thought. Jay didn't care about stains. He didn't care about getting his hands messy. He would do anything if it meant making her feel better. Erin brought her head down onto his shoulder and sighed.

Jay placed a light kiss on top of her head before nudging her slightly. She looked up and their eyes met. "You should probably sit down for a little while. You're losing a good bit of blood there." He spoke quietly, almost as though he was afraid of startling her.

"It's okay. I'm okay," Erin replied in a whisper. Her voice was shaky but he could tell that she was trying not to let it show. Jay had a talent for seeing right through the hardass bravado that she tried to put forward. It was a skill that he had acquired over time and it was no easy feat.

Even Erin couldn't deny that it was a shitty one. Shitty didn't even cover it. Her nose was streaming and it didn't seem as though it wanted to stop any time soon. She reached back again for another handful of tissues, abandoning the now soaking red clump that she had been holding close to her face. The box was empty. Not what she wanted to see. "Crap." Jay was silent. It wasn't like him to shut up in moments like this. Erin didn't like it at all. She wanted him to ramble on and on and mumble and panic because it meant that she didn't have to, and it made her feel better.

It was as if he had read her mind. If she hadn't had been so preoccupied then she would have commented on the spookiness of the situation but Jay started to speak. "Y'know when I was a kid I used to have a lot of nosebleeds. It sucked. It was funny though, I remember that my parents always thought that I was getting in fights. They always went off on one when I came home with a stained t-shirt, saying that I was a bad influence on Will because he shouldn't see his older brother misbehaving so much in school. I only fought when someone was picking on him. And I always won. I remember in the 5th grade we had a new teacher. It was right at the start of the year and she was just qualified so she had no idea what she was doing with a class full of ten year olds. I felt bad for her. I felt even worse when she had to deal with Niagara falls streaming out of my nostrils on her first day."

Erin snorted when he finished. Jay took a deep breath, realising just how much he had been speaking. She started to speak without thinking. "I only ever had a few. They were never as bad as this though."

Jay opened his mouth to reply but something caught his attention. "I think that it's finally stopped." Erin moved her hand away from her nose, gazing down at it to search for any sign of fresh blood but there was nothing to be seen other than her stained red flesh. Jay brushed his thumb against her cheek, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards. "Looks like you're all good. You should take it easy though."

The brunette sighed loudly in relief. "Thank God." They both moved over to the sink and Jay turned the faucet on, his hands being the cleanest. Erin cupped her hands, bringing a small pool of water to her face and attempting to wipe away some of the dried blood that was still around her nose. As she brought her hands away from her face she snuck a glance at Jay, realising that he wasn't paying attention to her, and flicked the remaining water towards him with a small laugh.

Jay nudged her shoulder lightly, spraying some back with his fingers before squirting some more soap into his palm. "I can definitely see you being the fighting type."

"Yeah?" Erin laughed before admitting offhandedly. "Honestly, it was a lot more getting hit than actual fighting."

Jay paused. He was always wary whenever Erin mentioned something like this. Glimpses into her past were few and far between and he was never sure how he was supposed to little comments like this. She seemed unfazed by her admission. "Oh?" He wished he could have thought of something better to say than just that.

She realised her mistake quickly. When she noticed the look on his face, she attempted to brush it off as nothing at all. "It's not a big deal. Before he went to prison my dad lived with us for a little while. He had a short temper, I took the brunt of it. Then before Teddy's dad left he was with us too. He didn't like me much. He didn't even like Teddy much. I just wasn't his kid, y'know? So he didn't care. I was just a brat who got in the way."

"I'm sorry," he replied. She shrugged. "It is a big deal. Not that it happened. I mean it is, but not exactly. I just appreciate that you feel comfortable enough with me to tell me these little things."

Erin smiled slightly. "Thanks for being there to listen."

"Any time." Jay lifted a hand to her face, wiping off a flake of red. He looked at her for a moment, glancing down at her torso and chuckling slightly. "We should probably get you a new shirt."

 **So I'm going to start a series of one-shots. They're all going to be about (mostly) Erin getting hurt and Jay comforting but there will be a few Jay moments thrown in there. Thanks to the reviewer that gave me the idea for this. In** _ **Shoot Me**_ **the hospital scenes had sort of run their course but I do still want to write some hospitally moments - so here we are. Enjoy!**

 **This was definitely a light one to get started. There are gonna be a lot more dramatic one-shots. Tell me if there's anything you want to see.**


	2. Stabbed

Erin could remember the day that she decided that she wanted to be a cop. If she tried hard enough then she could almost pin it down to a precise moment. It was a few months after Voight had taken her in and she had finally started to settle into her new life. Hank had come home later after a long case. It was way past Justin's bed time and they were both supposed to be fast asleep, but when cases dragged on neither of them could seem to. During those restless nights, Erin always let the younger boy sleep in her room. He would drag a duvet behind him and tuck a pillow underneath his arm, sheepishly tapping on her door regardless of the fact it was always opened. Camille didn't trust her enough yet to keep it closed unless she was changing.

She would hear the front door click softly and the wooden floorboards of the living room creak, the whispers of the adults downstairs resonating throughout the whole house. Camille could never sleep either on nights like that. She would wait up until the sun came back up if she had to. After a while Hank would shuffle upstairs, treading carefully and trying not to wake the two of them up, and stand at the bedroom door for a few minutes. Erin would always pretend to be asleep, praying that she wouldn't get caught but Hank always seemed to see right through it. He never said a word though.

Erin wanted that life. She wanted to have the excitement of the job and the hectic lifestyle, and the ability to come home at night regardless of what time it was and have the perfect family to watch over. It wasn't conventional but Erin hated conventional. She had never had conventional. She just wanted to be for someone what Voight was for her. She owed him that much. The only thing that she had to remind herself of was that it wasn't all fun and games. Life wouldn't be anything like the cop shows they watched on TV. Not every case would work out the way that they wanted and there would be people that she wouldn't be able to save. There were going to be nights where she wasn't sure if she would make it back home at all. It had taken years, but she got where she wanted to be.

She loved her job. There was no denying it. It was just difficult to watch things fall apart. She had lost count of how many bad days they'd had together as a team. It always brought everyone down a little. The only good thing that came from the bad cases was that the better days shone through that but brighter. Today had been one of the better days. They had somehow reunited a father and daughter after bringing down a human trafficking network. It was a long case but days like that were the days that Erin lived for.

"Molly's," Ruzek announced, pushing his chair in and grabbing his coat. "First round is on me."

They were all in a good mood. It didn't matter how exhausted they all were. Jay smiled as he moved over to where his girlfriend was standing. They had always kept things professional in the district but he couldn't help but beam at her. "I could sure use a drink."

Erin couldn't help but groan internally at the thought of Molly's. Sure, it was always good to celebrate but all she wanted to do was curl up in bed and binge watch a few episodes of Grey's Anatomy. The noise and constant obligation to keep up a conversation was not what she needed right now. "I'm beat. I think I'm just gonna head."

"What? No." Jay pouted, his face falling immediately. "Please Er."

She couldn't stand it when he pulled that move on her. She could never resist those puppy dog eyes. "I'd not be much company for you."

"You don't even have to speak. Just sit, have a beer and make me look pretty," Jay pleaded.

"I can't tempt you into coming home with me and getting take out instead?"

"Maybe," he considered for a moment. "Only if you come for a drink first though."

"One drink." Jay grinned as she replied, walking back over to his desk to grab his own jacket. "You drive a hard bargain, Halstead."

"One drink," he repeated her words. Erin couldn't help but smile slightly at the sight of him. He practically bounced over to his desk. The one thing that she would never understand about him was how he could go through a day like today and not be tired at all. He had the energy of a little kid waking up on Christmas morning when he wanted to. It was one of the things that she loved most about Jay.

The ride to Molly's seemed quicker than usual/ For a moment or two before they left the district, Erin had almost considered giving the car keys to Jay and letting him drive for once but she quickly changed her mind. She didn't want to encourage him; make him get the wrong idea and think that she would start letting him drive all the time. Erin smiled a little at the thought of him. Parking a few feet away from the bar door, she took her time unbuckling her seatbelt and grabbing her phone but before she could make another move she noticed Jay's swiftly moving figure in front of her. He had raced around to her door and pulled it open. The perfect gentleman. She swung her body around, placing her feet on the sidewalk and laughing slightly at his actions.

Just as it usually was, the bar was full and buzzing. They welcomed the warmth of the room as they stepped out of the cold Chicago night. Erin had almost forgotten all together that it was a Saturday night. It had been far too long since she had been able to enjoy one of those. Noticing an opening, Jay pulled her through the crowd and over to a newly empty booth, pushing her to the inside as he slid onto the seat beside her. Ruzek sat across from them soon after and Atwater followed closely behind, each of them carrying two bottles of beer and two shot glasses. Jay raised an eyebrow at them both and Adam looked back confusedly.

"Don't question my generosity," Ruzek said seriously. "It is a rare and generous gift."

"I'm I allowed to ask what the hell's in those shots?" Erin chuckled.

"What that is, is a creation of Herrmann's," Atwater grimaced. "If it's a deadly concoction then you can take it up with him."

Erin sighed and looked to Jay. He shrugged, picking up his own glass and motioning towards her to pick up her own. They raised them towards each other slightly before knocking them back, gasping as the smooth liquid made contact with their tongues and the backs of their throats.

"I don't think I want to know what's in that," Jay coughed, taking a long drink of his beer.

"Agreed."

"I can live with that."

It didn't take too long for Erin to forget that she had only promised Jay one drink. Empty bottles had begun to line the table, shot glasses dotted around them, but she barely noticed the build up. Their friends had abandoned them a few beers in, leaving the young couple alone as they snuck kisses in between gazes. She was leaning against his body, resting her head lightly on top of his shoulder after reaching up for another kiss, feeling her vision blur slightly. He took one last swig of his beer before turning towards her and whispering in her ear. "I think we should get out of here."

The brunette didn't hesitate to push his body slightly away from her, moving him so that she could get out of her space in the small booth. Jay glanced around the room, his eyes searching for Atwater and Ruzek. He spotted them talking to his older brother a few tables over, thoroughly engrossed in their conversation. Jay tried to grab their attention with shouting but failed. Before he could try again, Erin laced her fingers through his and began pulling him back through the crowd and towards the door just as he had done to her a few hours earlier.

"Shouldn't we say goodbye?" Jay asked as the reached the door.

Erin shook her head. "I'm sure they'll cope."

They stepped back out into the cold air and Jay didn't hesitate, pinning her against the wall and pressing his lips against hers. It was sloppy and impatient, and it made them both want to get home that bit sooner.

"My place or yours?" he said, attempting to catch his breath.

She smirked against his cheek. "So, was this just your way of trying to get me into bed tonight?"

"If I recall correctly, you were the one that suggested going home straight away after shift finished," he replied.

"Details," Erin said, pulling him back in for a kiss. "Either way you are now taking advantage of your slightly intoxicated girlfriend."

"I don't hear you complaining," he laughed. "So, my place or yours."

She thought for a second, reaching for his hand again. "Your place is closer. Do you wanna call a cab?"

He nodded with a smile, feeling in his pockets for his phone. His smile dropped when he realised that it wasn't there. "Shit. I had it back at the bar. I must have left it there."

"I can't take you anywhere, Halstead."

"I will be back in a minute," Jay sighed, kissing her quickly before turning back. "Don't go anywhere."

"I'll be here."

The brunette watched as he half-ran back in the direction of the bar, starting to walk in the direction of his apartment. She wouldn't get far before he caught back up and standing still in the streak always made her feel a little uneasy. If the few steps that she took were any indicator then she'd had far more to drink than she thought she did. Thank God neither of them was stupid enough to try driving in this state. She could imagine the earache that would cause her - 'Chicago Intelligence Unit Detectives Caught in Drink Driving Fiasco'.

Erin glanced back towards the bar before taking a couple more steps. He had been gone for a little longer than he should have been gone for but it didn't faze her. She knew what Jay was like. He could start a conversation in an empty room if he had to. He had probably felt guilty for not saying goodbye to everyone.

A hand grabbed her waist suddenly from behind and pulled her back. She laughed ever so slightly at first, thinking that he had snuck up behind him and tried to surprise her. Jay had always liked to try and catch her off guard. It just wasn't Jay's face that appeared in front of her own and it wasn't Jay's hands that were pushing her up against another wall. It wasn't his face, or his hands, or his voice that spoke loudly next to her ear.

"Give me everything you've got," the voice demanded. "I want your money, your phone, jewellery..."

"I don't have any money," she shouted back. "My phone is in my pocket."

Her wrists were pinned painfully high above her head, held in place by one of his forearms while his other hand searched her pockets desperately for anything of interest. It wasn't like her to freeze in moments like this. She didn't want to. Getting mugged was a sobering experience to say the least. While her attacker was distracted, Erin brought her right knee up and slammed it against his groin.

"Bitch." She felt a sharp pain in her stomach. He must have punched her. He definitely punched her hard. The air in her lungs seemed to escape quickly and she hit the ground hard as the man let go of her. His hands were still at her waist, she could still feel him grabbing at her. "What the fuck? You're a cop?"

She couldn't catch her breath at all. The sound of running footsteps grew fainter as they moved further and further away. It didn't take her long to be alone again. She tried to sit up, leaning back against the wall for support. Where was he? Where was Jay? Her vision began to blur again but she could tell it wasn't the alcohol this time. He definitely punched her hard.

Erin heard footsteps again and subconsciously braced herself for whatever was coming her way. She didn't know if he had managed to take her cell or not. What else was left for him to come back for. Unless he wanted to finish her off. She would put up a fight this time. She was better than what she had done before, she was tougher than that.

"Erin!" A familiar voice spoke as it approached her and she sighed with relief. Jay was the only person that she wanted near her right now. She heard his voice again but it wasn't talking to her. Maybe it was the cab that he said he was going to phone. She couldn't seem to bring her head up from it's position facing the concrete sidewalk in front of her to check. His hands pressed firmly against her stomach and she winced sharply, the oxygen leaving her chest again. "Erin, hold on for me."

She couldn't speak. She wanted to tell him to get off of her because it hurt. She had just been punched in the gut, she didn't need him to be prodding her in her already forming bruises. Looking down at where his hands were placed, she noticed the red mess covering them. It didn't make sense. Why was their blood? She had kicked her attacker and he had punched her. Right?

"What happened?" Erin managed to choke out.

"It's okay. You're okay. Just breath for me," he replied. He looked worried. Erin could tell that much. That was the one thing that told her things weren't okay. She wasn't okay. "You've been stabbed but it's alright. I've got you and the EMT's are on their way and they're going to take good care of you. Okay?"

She nodded slightly, feeling his hands lower her softly to the ground. He bundled up his jacket and placed it carefully under her head like a pillow. Her ears were ringing slightly but she could hear other voices that she knew around her, she just wasn't sure exactly where they were coming from. She had never been stabbed before, she didn't know what she was supposed to do. The only thing that she wanted to do was close her eyes but she knew that it was a bad idea, instead trying to focus on Jay's face above her. She brought her hands over her stomach, resting them on top of his and grimacing as she felt the sticky substance hit her fingers.

Time moved differently. It felt like one minute she was there and the next she had missed minutes completely. Her view shifted from that of Jay to one of the EMT's in the blink of an eye.

"Hey Erin, it's Sylvie," she said softly. Erin could feel another of the EMT's moving beside her. "You're going to be just fine. We're gonna take care of you."

She could see Jay's face again, feeling his hand holding on tightly to hers. "It's going to be okay." Erin wished that he would stop saying that.

"Are you in pain?" Erin shook her head.

She closed her eyes again, opening them to the sight of the bright lights of the emergency room. Noise filled her ears, making her head spin but she felt lighter than she had before.

"Female, early 30's. Knife wound to the left flank. BP's 80/50," a man spoke. She knew where she was. She could hear the nurses and doctors scrambling around her but the man's voice was calm and composed. "I'm gonna need two bags of O Neg and two bags of plasma."

Erin felt her body move. Arms lifted her quickly from the stretcher to the bed. She couldn't feel anything at all other than that. She couldn't feel their hands or the pillow beneath her head. She was almost grateful for that though. It meant that she couldn't feel any pain.

"Hey, Erin, can you hear me?" the same voice spoke again. She tried to speak but nothing came out, instead nodding as much as she could. She heard a sigh of relief from next to her and an oxygen mask was placed over her mouth. "It's looking deep. I'm gonna have to take her into surgery to get a better look and stop the bleeding."

The noise around her began to fade gradually. The brunette didn't even realise that she had closed her eyes this time at all. The room was darker when she opened them. The thought crossed her mind that she might be dead but the slow beeping of the monitor next to her bed brought her back to reality. The first things that she felt was the dryness of her throat and the painful ache in her stomach. Erin groaned slightly, scrunching up her eyes and wishing that she could go back to being unconscious again.

"Don't you ever do that to me again," Jay spoke suddenly. She turned her head to face him, licking her dry lips and smiling slightly at his worried expression. "I'm serious. You can't put me through this again."

"Through what? I was the one that got stabbed." Erin smirked, wincing slightly as she took another deep breath in. Jay frowned at her joking.

"Don't even kid," he shook his head and reached for her hand. "I was so worried about you."

"I'm okay now," she replied.

"I know, and I'm here for you. It's gonna be a long road to recovery Er."

"How about we start with some water?" Erin asked and Jay nodded, a small smile playing on his lips as he reached for the jug at the end of her bed. "I can feel a hangover coming on."

 **Thank you for the amazing response! I'm glad everyone liked the last chapter. I'm open for requests so just send me a review or a PM if you have anything that you want to see from me. Hope you liked this chapter!**

 **(P.S. SassyBush, you are super enthusiastic and I appreciate it. Your review on my other story, Shoot Me, was actually what inspired me to start this collection. So, thank you.)**


	3. Appendicitis

Erin had lost count of the amount of times that she had been sick in her life. It didn't bother her half us much as it used to, and even back then she tried not to let it get to her. As a kid she had just learned to grin and bear it. It wasn't like she had much other option. Living in the situation that she had, being under the weather was a regular occurrence - especially when she was growing up with a drug dependant mother that cared more about how she was going to get her next fix than how she was going to pay for the gas and water bills. Erin could remember the worst of the cold Chicago nights. The nights that she gave her blankets to Teddy. The nights that she could barely wrap her arms around herself, never mind her brother, because they were too stiff to move more than a few inches at a time.

Those were the type of nights that your mom was supposed to be making you hot chocolate and tucking you warmly into bed. Erin had seen the holiday movies. She had never gotten the same treatment that she watched on the screen. Instead she always found herself shivering and checking Bunny's pulse with blue fingers when she hadn't made any noise in a few hours.

Most of the time she would try and hide it. She would go to school with her nose streaming and coughs rattling her tiny frame. It was nothing new for the teachers. She was a kid. Kids get sick. Erin could remember facing their worried eyes only a few times when she could barely stand up straight but even then she was just pushed along to the nurse's office. The only good thing about going there was the fact that she could sleep for a few hours and not have to worry about Teddy. It meant that she could stay up that little bit longer at night to make sure that he was okay.

For the first time in a long time, Erin was struggling. Hiding it was proving more difficult than she had anticipated. She had been hugging the toilet ever since she had gotten home from the district that night.

She figured that it was just the flu. There was always some crazy bug that was getting passed around and with the amount of people that she came into contact with on a day to day basis, she was bound to catch something. At least, that's what Erin tried to tell herself between heaves. It didn't feel much like a cold, or the flu, and she hadn't eaten anything weird enough to give herself food poisoning. Maybe she would have to switch to a new Thai place. Telling herself that didn't make things any easier though. The thought couldn't stop her throat from stinging and her body from aching, or the cramps in her stomach that were making her wince every few minutes.

Erin jumped. The sound of her cell phone ringing suddenly caught her off guard. It had been going off all night but it had been a while since a call had come through. She could barely lift her head for more than a few seconds at a time but she knew that it would just keep going. It was probably Jay just checking up on her but she knew that he wouldn't stop unless he knew that she was alright.

She pulled her phone down from up on the counter and swiped to answer. "Hey."

Erin coughed. Her voice was hoarse.

"Finally," Jay laughed from the other end of the line. "I was beginning to think that you were ignoring me." She smiled at the sound of his voice. She always smiled when she heard his voice. Especially on days like today.

"Sorry, I was sleeping," she lied.

"Sleeping?" he said, his voice sounding serious. "It's not even 10."

Jay knew that she hadn't been feeling very well. She had been trying to take it easy all through the day so that neither of the men in her life would be suspicious. Voight wouldn't let her step foot in the district if she wasn't 100% and Erin knew that. It had been manageable at work when she was busy and distracted. She had been popping pills like candy then but now all she could do was lay down and try not to vomit everywhere.

"I'm fine," she replied. "I'm feeling a lot better."

All that she wanted was for Jay to be holding her. She would never tell him that though. He just had a knack of being able to put her at ease. It didn't matter what kind of day they had or how bad the case was - when his arms were around her and she could feel his heart beating against her, it made everything better.

"I could come over then? We could order some food in."

It was supposed to be date night. She had cancelled on date night. It was the one night that came around every now and again where they could at least try and be a normal couple. They would go out for dinner or a movie, and try to avoid Molly's like the plague despite the fact that it pained them both dearly and normally ended up back there anyway. Most importantly, they would pretend that they weren't a part of any Intelligence team.

"I won't be much fun," Erin replied quickly. "We'll do something tomorrow night."

Date night had never really been Erin's scene but she did it anyway. It would be a hell of a lot more difficult if she didn't have Halstead to get her through it. It didn't matter to her what they were doing, as long as they were doing it together. They could be sticking forks in their eyes and all Erin would be able to think about would be the man that was doing it with her. Now, she just wished that she was suffering through some embarrassing rom-com instead of shivering on the bathroom tiles.

"Okay," he said. "If you're sure."

"I'm sure. Night."

"Night Er."

Erin waited until she heard the click at his end of the line before she closed her phone over. Lowering herself down to the ground, she tried to make a pillow out of the wet towels that were hanging over the side of her bathtub. It didn't make much difference to her though. The cold was comfortable.

* * *

She couldn't remember falling asleep.

One minute she was talking to Jay and the next she's waking up to a banging on the front door of her apartment. Her head was spinning but she forced herself to stand. The knocking wasn't stopping. She knew that it was either going to be Voight or Jay and she couldn't help but hope that it was the former. Erin felt like she was going to keel over but the last thing that she wanted was to be told that she couldn't do her job. If it were any other morning she would be wincing at the feeling of the floor beneath her but having been lying on it all night, it didn't bother her in the slightest.

He was in the apartment before she could even open the door the full way, dragging grocery bags in with him. His brown hair was messy and his stupid grin was plastered on his face. Clueless as always. "I thought you were going to leave me knocking all morning. Have you been working out?"

Erin forced a smile onto her face. Yoga pants and tank tops weren't her usual bedroom attire but she was too exhausted to care. "No, I was just...cleaning." She hated lying to him.

"Cleaning?" Jay raised an eyebrow and Erin laughed.

"What's so unbelievable about that?" she replied.

He started to empty the bags onto the counter. She took a deep breath as soon as he turned his back. The pain in her side had subsided but the nausea was still there.

"Nothing," Jay said. Erin could practically hear his smirk. "Bacon and eggs?"

"Sounds great."

It did not sound great. Eating anything was the last thing that was on Erin's mind but she didn't want to make him suspicious.

Jay turned back towards her, a frown settling on his face suddenly. "You're not looking so great, Lindsay. I thought you said you were feeling better?"

"Gee thanks," she scoffed, trying to brush it off, but the look on his face didn't change. "I'm fine. I'm just tired. One of those weeks."

"Are you sure?"

"Jay."

He sighed, moving closer to her. "Okay."

He leaned down but she turned her face to the side, redirecting a kiss meant for her lips to her cheek. Jay frowned again. "I have to brush my teeth." She didn't want to kiss him when all she had been doing was puking her guts up all night. He nodded and turned back to the kitchen, pulling out a frying pan and opening the packet of bacon. "I'm gonna jump in for a shower."

"Hmm," he replied. "That sounds like something I want to be a part of."

Erin laughed. "Just don't burn the bacon, hotshot."

She walked to the bathroom slowly, stretching out the muscles that had been curled up while she slept. Closing the door behind her, she slid the lock over quietly, and took off her clothes, leaving them in a pile by the toilet.

It was strange. All she wanted to do was dive head first into a bath filled to the brim with ice chips, but the feeling of the hot water on her skin was the most relief she had had in days. The pain in her body disappeared instantly as steam filled the room and clouded her senses. Erin could have stayed in there for days. She dipped her head back, soaking her hair underneath the warm water, before squirting a little shampoo into the palm of her hand. It was going to be a long day.

As soon as she turned the shower off a wave of nausea hit her and she lowered herself to the ground, pulling her knees up to her chest as she sat on the bottom of the bathtub. She wanted to power through it. She wanted to ignore it and not let it overpower her. It wouldn't be easy emptying out the contents of her stomach if there wasn't anything in her stomach to empty out.

Erin turned the shower back on quickly, raising herself up to her knees before she gagged. She didn't want Jay to hear her puking.

She forced herself to stand again once she was done and pulled a clean towel around her body. Steam coated the mirror on the wall and the mirror by her sink but she was almost grateful. She didn't want to see how rough she looked.

As soon as she was finished, Erin opened the bathroom door. The smell of food hit her immediately and it took her a second to adjust. She had to stop herself from rushing back to the toilet. The jeans that she had been wearing the previous day were still on the floor from when she had taken them off after she had gotten home. Erin slipped them on carefully, grabbing a plain t-shirt and bra from her drawer and putting them both on afterwards.

"You still alive in there?" Jay called from the kitchen.

"I'll just be a minute."

Erin sat down on the bed, rubbing her face with her hands and taking another deep breath. She ran a brush through her hair, cringing as it got caught in tangles. She just wanted to go back to sleep. Before she could think anymore about it, she found a pair of socks and pulled her black boots on.

Jay was pouring coffee into her favourite mug when she walked into the room. She couldn't help but smile at the sight.

"Black," he said. "Or are we feeling something different."

"Black is fine," she replied. "Black is great."

Erin sat down at the table and took a small sip from the cup in front of her. Jay slid a plate over to her and began piling food onto his own. She picked up her fork and pushed her eggs around to make it look like she was eating but she couldn't put anything near her mouth. If she even tried, she knew that she would end up puking all over the table and that would not end well for anyone.

"Is my cooking that terrible?" Jay sat across from her. "Not hungry?"

"Not really," Erin admitted with a small smile.

"I thought you said you were feeling fine."

"I am fine. Just not so hungry," she replied, continuing before he could say anything else. "Coffee however, I can never get enough of."

"I second that," Jay laughed.

Jay being in a good mood always put Erin in a better one. In the ten minutes or so that they had been sitting down, she had managed a few spoonfuls of scrambled egg and a bite of bacon. It was better than nothing. She could feel her stomach protest but she knew that Jay would only get worried if she didn't touch her breakfast at all. It was either that or force down a lunch that she didn't want later. Erin wouldn't even let Jay wash their dishes regardless of his insistence.

"Just put them in the sink and I'll get them later."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, of course." Erin was feeling good already. "It's almost 10. We should get going."

By the time that they both got down to their cars Erin figured that the worst of it was over. She slid into the driver's seat and watched as Jay disappeared from sight. As soon as she turned the key a sharp pain attacked her stomach.

"Fuck."

It took a second for her to catch her breath again. She wasn't sure if she would be able to make it back up to her apartment.

Work.

She had to go to work. Jay would freak out if she wasn't right behind him. Erin pushed down on the gas and tried to stay focused on the road. She would be fine as long as she kept busy. It was just a bug. She had been through much worse, she could get through a little stomach ache. The journey went by in a blur. Usually she liked to take in the city as she passed it by. It was her home. She loved it all. But she could barely concentrate on what was in front of her.

* * *

Erin had managed to get through the most of the day. Barely. It didn't take long for Jay to realise that things were definitely not okay but he didn't want to crowd her. There wasn't much for them to do outside of the district so he watched over her like a hawk from his own desk. He figured that he was being sly about it - making conversation, working with her, bringing her coffee - but Erin knew exactly what he was doing. She appreciated it.

The pain hadn't left her since she arrived at the district that morning but she tried to ignore it as best she could. She had hunted out all of the painkillers that she could throughout the day but they didn't help in making her feel any better. She just wanted to go home but she wouldn't give Jay the satisfaction of that,

"We don't have to do anything tonight."

Erin's head shot up. "What?"

Jay closed over the file that was on his desk. "You said last night that we could do something tonight instead. We don't have to. I mean if you're not feeling up to it."

"I'm fine." She wanted to blow him off. Rain check. There would be plenty of date nights in their future. "We can do something."

"What about just a drink?" Jay smiled. "We don't have to go anywhere special."

Erin frowned. Another sharp pain. "Yeah sure."

Jay frowned back, noticing her expression. "Or we could stay in."

"I'm good with whatever you want to do," she replied, smiling slightly in an attempt to reassure her partner.

He hesitated, searching her face for any sign of weakness. "Okay."

"I'm gonna grab some more coffee," Erin said, trying to change the subject. She stood up suddenly before Jay could react and he rushed to her side.

"I can get that for you."

"I can get my own coffee Halstead," she smirked at his worrying eyes. He pulled the mug from her hand teasingly and she froze. It was as though time stopped.

"Erin."

"Shit," she whispered.

"Erin, what's wrong?" he persisted, dipping his head down to look into her eyes.

It hit her without warning, like a knife stabbing at the right side of her stomach. The pain before was a dull throb in comparison to the agony that she now faced head on. There was no discomfort, no cramping. It was torture. Erin hit the ground faster than she could process what was happening. Jay barely had enough time to stop her head from hitting the floor.

The next time that she opened her eyes, Voight's own were looming above hers. She couldn't hear him. All she could feel was pain.

Her next sight was the bright, piercing lights of the hospital's ER. Half a dozen faces appeared above her own. She recognised Jay's brother amongst them. Erin could hear everything. Every voice, every breath. She could feel nothing. Her body was numb.

"Jay?" Erin heard herself speak. She didn't even realise that she was doing it. The name passed by her lips without her even realising it.

* * *

"I'm here. I'm right here."

Erin smiled at the sound of his voice. She always smiled when she heard his voice.

"Jay."

"You are an idiot, Erin Lindsay," he replied. "Scaring me like that."

"What happened?" The brunette brought her hand to her face, brushing her hair away and inspecting the drip that was connected to it.

"Your appendix almost burst. That's what happened," Jay said. "But we caught it just in time. They took you into surgery just after you were brought in."

"Oh," Erin sighed. "I'm sorry."

"What do you have to be sorry for?"

"I thought it was just the flu, or something," she frowned.

Jay laughed slightly. "It definitely was not the flu." He reached over and pulled her hand down, holding it in his own for a few second. "I'm not sure how we can top this date night."

 **Thanks for all your feedback! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, I've been really sick. It's been one thing after another with chest infections/severe heat stroke/doctors/hospitals/travelling abroad. It's been mental. This was a super quick chapter and not my best by any means.**

 **What did everyone think of the series finale? Erin broke my heart. My heart physically shattered into a million pieces. The parallels between Voight and Lindsay from the season 2 and 3 finales were unbelievable.**

 **On another note, I got a few comments saying that I had copied a story. Firstly, I've spoken to the author and it's 100% an unfortunate coincidence. They are an amazing writer and were super nice about the whole thing. Secondly, chill fam. I'm not gonna stoop to that level. Jay's past has been touched on a little and my mind drifted to possibilities, including PTSD, and I came up with what I figured was a cool idea. No copying, no stealing. It's an idea that I'm sure a few people have had.**

 **So apologies, I guess I have to be more original.**


	4. Kamikaze

**Hey, hi, hello. This is just a quick one-shot based off 4x19 and what could have happened if it wasn't just Kim that had been drugged. I've seen a couple of people trying this out, so I thought why not. Please let me know what you think.**

It didn't matter how many times Erin had gone undercover in the past few years, she still got the same anxious, twisting feeling every time. It was as though her brain couldn't let go of the thought that things could always go wrong quickly. She always managed to keep it under control though. It was her job. Erin might have felt vulnerable but she wasn't weak, and she wasn't about to let something like this be the thing that defeated her. They might have been in a car with rapists, but the guys weren't violent criminals. There wasn't much that they had to be worried about as long as they followed their orders. Erin couldn't get the feeling in the pit of her stomach to go away.

The brunette knew that if that was how she was feeling, then Kim must have been just as nervous. Maybe not. It was different for her. It was personal. They had maintained eye contact for most of the car journey, even when they were feigning drunken conversation with the two men in the front. By the looks of things, they had been more concerned with the prospect of having two women in their apartment on a Saturday night than what they had been doing in the back seat.

Erin gave Kim a final look before they stepped into the apartment. She knew that the younger woman didn't need any reassurance from her. She'd come out with the intention of finding the bastard that had attacked her sister. Still though, Erin knew that it couldn't hurt. She watched carefully as the men walked in front of them, leading the way, careful not to let her guard down at all in case one of them turned unexpectedly.

"Is this your place?" Erin asked, flashing them a quick smile.

One of the guys answered as he slid off his jacket, taking a few steps away from them both to throw it onto a table in the corner of the room. "I share it with a few friends."

 _Who are conveniently not here_ , Erin couldn't help but think.

"Wait," Kim laughed, pretending to be confused as she looked around the room. They both knew that there wasn't going to be a party waiting for them there as promised but they had to at least act slightly surprised. "Where's the party?"

"We are the party," he replied, exchanging a quick look with his friend. "We've got drinks, music..."

Erin giggled at his words. It was totally unlike her. The sound was almost foreign to her but it was all part of the act. Kim followed suit. The older cop looked around the room slowly, making sure that she didn't make either of the men in front of her suspicious. The last thing that they needed was for their cover to be blown before they even had the chance to find information. Erin knew that she would be able to take one of them on if she had to, she just wasn't sure how well off either of them would be when she walked away from it.

They dropped their clutches onto the kitchen counter, discretely making sure that the camera was facing outwards enough so that the rest of the unit would be able to see what was going on in the apartment. They placed their cell phones down next to them, wandering over to the couch that was by the door. Erin glanced over her shoulder as she followed Kim. She could have bet money on one of the guys lifting them both but she wanted to know for sure that they had actually done it. And she was right. Though she wasn't sure why the sight caused her stomach to turn. It was exactly what they had expected to happen.

Kim lowered herself down onto the couch next to Erin, watching the guys in front of them just as intently as her friend was. They had taken themselves into the kitchen and their backs were turned away from them, giving the women another opportunity to communicate with each other. It wasn't like the guys were being discrete. Erin wondered how the other women that had fallen for their charm hadn't realised that something wasn't right.

"What are those?" Erin asked as they walked back over, placing two shot glasses down in front of them with a smirk. She could only imagine what concoction they had mixed together.

They both answered at the same time, overcompensating ever so slightly. "Kamikazes."

Even without instructions from Voight, Erin would have been hesitant to touch anything that had been given to her by guys like that. If the way things had gone with Nicole and her friend were anything to go by then there would be far more drugs in one tiny glass than anyone could handle. What was it again? Ketamine.

"Aren't you going to have one?" Erin spoke again, trying to stall for as long as she could. Kim could tell that the detective was getting antsy. It wasn't often that the older woman was the one that started to panic but Kim could see it in her eyes. It didn't phase her though. She was keeping her cool. There was only one thing that was on her mind. Besides, the unit were watching their every move. There was nothing that they had to worry about.

"We just did. They're awesome."

The detective looked to Kim. They couldn't drink them. Voight had given them strict orders not to. Hell, Erin knew that it wouldn't end well. She knew what was in them. She let out another laugh. "I don't know." Kim followed suit but her words seemed to be lost in her throat. Erin was begging her silently to say something. Anything. "I'd rather smoke some pot. Do you guys have any?"

The dark haired guy sat down next to them, placing a hand on Erin's thigh. It was higher than she was comfortable with but she forced herself not to move away from them. "Do it for me?" Erin turned to look him in the eye, biting her lip slightly with a small smile. She could see how impatient they were becoming. She needed them to know that they were still into it.

"Do you girls want to party or not?"

Erin turned back to the other cop. Their options were running out fast. Except, Kim wasn't looking back at her. The shot glass was already halfway towards the other woman's mouth, and Erin couldn't do anything about it.

"Are you okay?" Erin asked, trying to be nonchalant. Kim grimaced slightly at the taste but smiled as soon as she had swallowed it.

Kim smiled. The worry in her eyes evident. "Yeah."

"How about you?" the guy next to Erin questioned, squeezing her leg lightly as he spoke. She wasn't sure what to say to him.

"I don't really feel like it."

She could see the disappointment in his eyes slowly turning into annoyance. "What's wrong with you? If you don't want to have fun with us then get the hell out of here."

Erin froze. She wasn't sure what she could do. She couldn't leave Kim in the apartment by herself with the two creeps beside them, but she knew how things could end if she followed her friends lead. The brunette took a deep breath. Voight was watching them. Jay was watching them. They would both be okay. "Fine."

She couldn't help but wince slightly as the liquid met her tongue. She wasn't a stranger to shots by any means but she wasn't sure what alcohol it even was. There was something about it that seemed to burn more than anything she'd drank before. Maybe that was because she knew what was really in it. It was as though she could feel it trickling all the way down to her stomach, seeping into her bloodstream with every passing second. The brunette knew that it was only a matter of time before the drugs started to kick in in full force.

Erin hadn't wanted things to go this way but what was she supposed to do. She'd promised herself that she wasn't going to touch anything like it ever again after her 'sabbatical'. She'd tried everything that she could get her hands on then. Or anything that had been given to her by her mother.

She looked to Kim again, plastering on the same sickeningly sweet smile that she had before. She wanted to throw up.

"See," the one closest to Kim said. Both cops looked towards the man, seeing the pleased expression that had taken over his face. They were trying not to let it contrast too much with their own. "I told you that it was good."

Kim stood up suddenly, pushing herself off of the couch with a wobble. "Do you have a bathroom that I could use?"

"Yeah, it's right down the hall."

Erin watched as the guy waited for a few moments before following Kim to the 'bathroom' - if they made it that far. She knew that her friend could hold her own - they had a plan - but she couldn't help but feel slightly worried. The dark-haired guy next to her was silent. He slid his arm carefully around her waist, smiling politely at her when she looked to him. Erin knew what he was waiting for. The moment that she seemed even slightly incapacitated, he would be all over her like a vulture.

Erin just hoped that Jay was on his way already.

She was starting to feel it now. It was only slight, but she knew it was there. It was definitely ketamine. Erin had used it before. Too many times than she wanted to admit. It had never been one of her favourites but somehow it always seemed to be one of the ones that made its way to her the most. She recognised the feeling all too well. It had only been a couple of minutes since she had downed the shot. It was like her mind was already starting to slip away from her body. Erin knew that it could only get worse.

She could hear him saying something but she couldn't make out what it was. His voice was a faint noise in the background. It was like she was floating underwater. Like she had ducked her head under the bathwater and someone was rattling on the door. Her fingers were the first thing that started to feel numb. As though they weren't a part of her. It made the panic start to rise in her chest. When his own started to travel up her body, she couldn't find the strength to push him away. The more she wanted to the more it felt like her arms were being pushed down by some invisible force. Erin didn't want him to touch her. He didn't want him near her. But there was nothing that she could do about it. All that she could think about was Jay. They weren't even together anymore but somehow her mind always managed to wander back to him.

She heard his call before she could see him. It was loud and clear, even with the haze that was clouding her mind. It pierced it effortlessly. Erin felt a weight being pulled off of her, watching as the guy that had been on top of her was thrown to the ground. Her partner's face appeared in front of her own, a worried look etched all over his face. It wasn't often that she saw genuine fear in his eyes like that. As though something had actually happened.

"Jay." Erin wanted to say something better to him, but all that she could seem manage was, "Thanks." It was as though her words were taking ten times as long to make their way from her brain to her mouth. The brunette knew that was all that needed to be said though. She was just glad that he was here.

Her eyes followed the rest of the team as they moved down the hall, breaking away from Jay for just a second. She tried to push herself up just like Kim had done a few minutes earlier but her limbs felt dead. Jay grabbed her before she had the chance to fall to the ground, pulling her up and guiding one of her arms over his shoulder. Even with her partner's support Erin still felt like she was swaying. She tried to take a few steps in the direction that the rest of the guys had but Jay stopped her before she could even take her first step.

"Woah there," he said, bending down and bringing his free arm behind her knees - scooping her up into her arms. "You can barely even walk. We have to get you to Med to get your stomach pumped."

Erin tucked her head into the crook of his neck, taking a deep breath in as she tried to get away from the swirling that was going on in her head. She just wanted it to stop. "M'kay." She opened her eyes momentarily just as they were leaving the apartment, catching the slightest glimpse of Kim behind her. The younger woman seemed just as unsteady on her feet as Erin had been, but unlike the detective she was getting by walking with the support of Adam. He looked just as anxious as Jay had. The only thing that Erin's eyes were drawn to though, was the dark red shade that covered Kim's hands

Erin hoped that she had given the bastard what he deserved.

It had only seemed like a few seconds since Jay had picked her up. It was as though she had blinked and suddenly they were outside. Erin wished that she could feel the cool Chicago air on her bare skin but she couldn't feel anything at all. Her partner lowered her down carefully until her feet made contact with the ground so that he could open the door to the back seat of his car. Jay pushed her back gently onto the seat until she was laying down completely, closing the door quickly as soon he was sure that she was okay. Erin wanted to protest. She wanted to tell him that she was fine and that she could sit up in the passenger seat until they got to the hospital. There was nothing wrong with her. But her eyes felt heavy and there was a part of her that wasn't even sure if she was breathing or not.

Erin wanted to panic. Her head was telling her that she should have been panicking. She should have been freaking out that she had ingested so much of the drug, but all that she could feel was calm.

* * *

Her eyes flickered open again as she heard another voice in her ear. She couldn't move and it felt as though the room around her was spinning, but she didn't feel dizzy. She felt like she was flying as high as a kite.

"Erin," the voice spoke again. "Can you hear me?"

She wanted to answer it but she couldn't. She couldn't even nod.

It was Will. She recognised it now. "Okay, Erin. This is going to be pretty uncomfortable but I need you not to fight it. I need you to try and swallow the tube as we feed it down your throat."

* * *

The next time that Erin woke up, all she could feel was a pounding in her head and an aching in her throat. The memory of what had happened were the first thoughts that flooded into her mind. She could remember taking the shot, and she could remember Jay holding her close to him, but that was about it. The only thing that she wanted to do was throw up. She blinked a few times, adjusting to the light in the room.

"Hey, kiddo," a gruff voice greeted her. "You had us worried for a second there."

There was a part of Erin that was disappointed that it wasn't Jay sitting beside her. "Sorry."

Hank smiled. "Don't be. You and Burgess are both fine. That's all that matters."

"I should have-"

"You did what you had to do," the older man interrupted her before she could go any further.

Erin sighed. She would do it again if it meant that Kim's sister finally got some justice. She was just glad that nothing serious had come out of it for either of them. They were lucky. It didn't take her long to crack when silence began to fill the room. "Is...um..."

Voight chuckled. He knew that there had been trouble in paradise the past few weeks for the pair. He would have been the first one to make Halstead pay if it had ended in tears, but he had seen how worried the younger man had been while they were waiting to hear about Erin. He knew that his heart was in the right place. "He's waiting patiently. I couldn't get him to go home." Erin couldn't help but smile slightly to herself as she heard the last part. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay? Get some rest."

"See you soon."

Erin watched as he left the room, suddenly finding herself alone. For a second she wasn't sure whether or not the older man was going to send Jay in or not. She should have made herself more clear. She should have asked for him specifically. Her mind was put at rest, though, when her partner's head popped through the door, making sure that it was okay to come in before he actually did.

"Hey," Erin said, the corners of her mouth inching upwards as she saw him.

"Hey." Jay took a few steps towards the bed, lowering himself down onto the chair that Voight had been sitting on a few minutes earlier. "How are you feeling?"

"Not so hot," she replied. She felt better now that he was there. She always did.

He chuckled, leaning forwards so that he was a little closer to her. "Yeah, getting your stomach pumped will do that to you."

She laughed softly, though regretted it immediately as a sharp pain seared through her body. "I don't recommend it."

"Will said that they'll be able to discharge you soon," Jay said. Erin let out a small sigh of relief at his words. There was nothing more that she wanted to do that slide into her own bed and forget that any of it had ever happened. He licked his lips. She could tell that he wanted to say something else, a silence forming between them all of a sudden. "But that you should have someone with you when you go home."

She shook her head. She didn't want to ask anymore of him. She tried to change the subject slightly. "I'll be fine. Besides Voight's already on his way home and I don't want to call him back."

Jay paused. "I was thinking that I could take you home. I mean, I don't want to impose or anything. Especially with what's been going on recently with us."

Erin's eyes met his. "It's been a long day, Jay. I'm sure the last thing that you want to do is be babysitting me."

"Honestly," he continued. "I don't mind. It would put my mind at rest. Seeing you like that tonight wasn't exactly easy."

It was true. It was one of the toughest things that he'd had to endure in a long time. He'd been there when she had been getting her stomach pumped. He'd watched the tube been forced down her throat as she struggled to even keep her eyes open. He'd watched her cough and heave, and it made him feel sick. It had been uncomfortable enough for him. Jay could even imagine what it must have felt like for Erin.

She smiled again. "Okay."

He smiled back. "Good."

There was a pressing thought at the back of both of their minds that told them it wasn't a good idea. Things were still fresh between them.

"Jay?"

"Yeah?" he replied.

Erin reached out a hand, lacing her fingers through his just like they used to. "Thank you."

She would take her chances.


End file.
